Results from the first two weeks
Hi everybody. Now that we've been doing fieldwork for a couple of weeks, Dave and I, along with our intern Jolene, with start posting several times a week to keep you updated on our progress at the 3835-3839 Falls Road site. Each day our interpretation of what once happened at this site changes as we find more and more stuff. Dave and Jolene are working on several units on the southernmost lot; I'll allow them to describe their findings in future posts. For now I'll describe the two units that we've opened in the interior of the former house on the northermost lot.
In three units inside the house last summer, we discovered a large number of really cool artifacts, including dozens of buttons and a large amount of butchered pig and chicken bone. In one of the first units to be opened up this summer, we encountered an interesting feature along one wall of the unit. While the function of the feature is still unclear (it may have simply been some spilled trash), it certainly yielded some interesting artifacts. Most impressive was an intact wine bottle. We could tell that the bottle was made with a two-piece mold and that the lip was hand-shaped, meaning that it dates to sometime during the 19th century. Nearby, we also unearthed several sherds of a transfer-printed pearlware pitcher or creamer, which would most likely date to sometime during the years 1820 to 1850--much earlier than the time of the structure whose remains are now on the property.
We are now working on another unit closer to the edge of the lot next to 3841 Falls Road. Just today we uncovered another feature that consisted of a thin strip of loose, dark soil with chunks of decaying wood. It appears that the wood may once have been part of a floor joist or a building footer, but we still need to excavate the surrounding strata before we can be sure.
Sometime next week we'll post pictures of all the cool artifacts we've been finding.
In three units inside the house last summer, we discovered a large number of really cool artifacts, including dozens of buttons and a large amount of butchered pig and chicken bone. In one of the first units to be opened up this summer, we encountered an interesting feature along one wall of the unit. While the function of the feature is still unclear (it may have simply been some spilled trash), it certainly yielded some interesting artifacts. Most impressive was an intact wine bottle. We could tell that the bottle was made with a two-piece mold and that the lip was hand-shaped, meaning that it dates to sometime during the 19th century. Nearby, we also unearthed several sherds of a transfer-printed pearlware pitcher or creamer, which would most likely date to sometime during the years 1820 to 1850--much earlier than the time of the structure whose remains are now on the property.
We are now working on another unit closer to the edge of the lot next to 3841 Falls Road. Just today we uncovered another feature that consisted of a thin strip of loose, dark soil with chunks of decaying wood. It appears that the wood may once have been part of a floor joist or a building footer, but we still need to excavate the surrounding strata before we can be sure.
Sometime next week we'll post pictures of all the cool artifacts we've been finding.
posted by Bob Chidester | 2:01 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home